Walk in the steps of Ben Hogan at The Village Golf Club

By: Ryan Ballengee

How many
times can you say you've walked the same footsteps as Ben Hogan? Odds are, not
many -- that is, unless you've played The Village Golf Club in Texas.

The Hawk was
in the first foursome to ever tee it up at the Houston-area course back when it
opened in 1964 as Panorama Country Club. Panorama Country Club became The
Village nine years ago and has been managed by Billy Casper Golf since the name
change.

The facility
boasts 27 holes of golf crafted from the imagination of two men -- the original
18-hole course designed by then-30-year-old Jay Riviere and a nine-hole course
designed by Jack Miller and opened in 1969. One of the nines is known as Winged
Foot, named for the New York club where Riviere worked as an assistant pro over
the legendary Claude Harmon. The Thunderbird nine completes the original par-72
course. The Rolling Hills nine is Miller's handiwork.

Both men
were shaped their courses using the same landscape, producing three nines that
challenge players of every skill level.

The Village
may not be long, but what it lacks in length it demands in accuracy. Tree-lined
fairways make longer hitters think twice about hitting driver. Better players
tend to think their way around the course, precisely the point of the game. The
ball has to be in the right place off the tee to have a chance of scoring well,
but isn't suffocating to the higher-handicap player must feel playing Sahalee
or Harbour Town, the Pete Dye icon that opened the same year Miller put the
finishing touches on his nine holes at The Village.

Back when
The Village opened, its location, Conroe, felt more like a distant neighbor to
Houston. Its population of 5,000 couldn't connect easily to the city as
Interstate 45 was still to be built, shortening the 43-mile journey between
towns. Today, Conroe is home to almost 50,000 people, more of an extension of a
sprawling, massive city than an escape from it. The town has seen its
population get younger and more diverse.

For almost
40 years, the country-club model worked for Panorama. However, after in the
wake of the post-9/11 recession, the club began to have trouble standing on its
own. Inside Conroe is the town of Panorama Village, once a retirement
community, whose city council began discussing the purchase late in '01, taking
almost four years to complete.

It was the
city's first order of business to convert Panorama Country Club into The
Village Golf Club, trading one word in the town name for another. The city chose Billy Casper Golf to manage the
course under its new identity.

The council
voted to invest nearly $2 million in the property, converting greens to
Bermudagrass and redoing all of the bunkers. The course was also opened in a
different way. As part of the renovation, some 200-300 trees were removed from
the property. Add that to the 1,200 trees removed by the club in the 1990s and
the course offers more breathing room than it did a half-century ago.

Despite the
removal of so many trees, lumber plays an important role in shaping The
Village’s two best holes.

On the par-4
ninth hole, a giant oak tree in the right-center of the fairway forces a player
to look left just to have a look at the green with their second shot. Even if
the tee shot is in the clear, the second shot is no bargain. With trees
continuing on the right and a water hazard short and left of the green, the
412-yard hole (from the tips) can make or break your first nine.

The Riviere
course – one of some 22 he designed in the Houston area in his career – ends
with an approach shot somewhat reminiscent of the one Ben Hogan faced in the
1950 U.S. Open at Merion with a 1-iron in hand. After hitting a tee shot at the
386-yard finisher, the player faces an intimidating second shot over water and
in plain view of anyone in the clubhouse. The audience and the circumstance may
not quite match the U.S. Open, but the blood will be pumping faster for sure.

The newly
renovated clubhouse is also a stunner, with new hardwood floors and a
completely redone golf shop. The banquet space, which comfortably holds 350
people, and meeting areas have been modernized.

As for the
care of the courses, a new superintendent has recently been hired.

The
relationship between a golf course and its surrounding community is always
vital, but is especially so with The Village and Conroe. The partnership is a
strong one.

“The golf
course needs the community to thrive, and the community needs the golf course
to thrive,” said Aaron Czajka, regional director of operations for Billy Casper
Golf and the first BCG employee hired at The Village. “The city has done so
much to preserve the course and the value of the community. It's humbling for
BCG to be a partner.”

The Village is
emblematic of an era gone by and the one in which we live. As a golf course,
The Village is emblematic of a different age of architecture, making it an
enjoyable throwback. Open now for nearly a decade as a public course, it
symbolizes a changing Texas.

In its next
half-century, hopefully The Village can embrace the best of what was and evolve
to resemble the best of what is.

-- This post first appeared in Global Golf Post.

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